In the field of wireless communications there has been a trend to make available and utilize spectrum for additional types of networks in addition to conventional cellular networks. One such network type which has been gaining in popularity and utilization is a peer to peer network in which communications occur in a relatively local vicinity.
Many modern wide area networks, e.g., cellular networks, routinely collect certain types of information regarding its registered users, e.g., as part of normal network control operations. For example the location or approximate location of registered users in the system may be tracked as part of normal system maintenance, e.g., for scheduling and/or load balancing purposes. The wide area networks may also be well suited for collecting and/or distributing other types of information about its registered users which may be of interest to others.
Peer to peer networks may have various advantages over cellular networks. For example, peer to peer networks may be well suited to perform efficient proximity detection in a local vicinity. Peer to peer networks may be well suited to communicate small amounts of payload information directly with low overhead. While peer to peer communications can provide satisfactory local information, it may be desirable for peer to peer devices to be able to obtain information corresponding to a larger geographic region than can be reached by direct peer to peer signals and/or historical information about device location or preferences that may be stored in a wide area network accessible device.
Based on the above discussion there is a need for new methods and apparatus that can utilize, in combination, both peer to peer and wide area networks and take advantage of features inherent in each type of network.